Search Results for: Lear 45

At about 1045 eastern time, a Cessna 172RG was damaged during a hard landing at Greater Rochester International Airport. The pilot was not injured. The pilot had flown from Rochester to Brockport and back. During the outbound leg, he suspected the airspeed indicator was reading low for his altitude and power setting, but was not convinced it was a significant problem. He landed at Brockport and departed for the return leg without exiting the airplane. On approach to Rochester, he was cleared to land on runway 22, the main runway, which led him to attempt to expedite the landing. He touched down with a high airspeed and descent rate, and the airplane was damaged in the bounced landing. Examin…

At about 1103 eastern time, a Beech BE-55 crashed in Norris Lake, killing the pilot. The pilot had filed an IFR flight plan for a 40-minute flight from McMinnville to Jacksboro. About 25 minutes into the flight he canceled his IFR clearance and proceeded in visual conditions. Witnesses reported hearing what sounded like engine trouble, followed by the airplane rolling into at least a 45-degree bank and pitching steeply down….

Couldnt resist commenting on Milovan Brenloves Gasping for Gas [Airmanship, February]. His example of the private pilot who believed he had 26.5 gallons per tank in his 150 only to discover in reality the airplane carried 22.5 gallons per tank wouldnt have been saved the embarrassment of running out of gas even had he plugged in the 45 gallon stats.

According to an old manual I have for a 74 150, usable fuel for the little trainer totals 22.5 gallons. Thats both tanks, not in each. The optional long range tanks in the 150s prior to 65 provided only 35 gallons; 38 gallons through 77; the 152 long range upped the ante to a total of 39 gallons usable.

To quote the article, Misin…

A Piper PA28-181 Archer crashed in night IMC approximately two miles from its destination airport, killing the pilot and passenger. The aircraft was destroyed. The instrument rated commercial pilot had approximately 300 hours total time, including 70 hours actual or simulated IMC and 90 hours in the accident aircraft. Witnesses reported hearing the engine begin to run roughly then go silent followed by the sound of impact a few moments later. FAA investigators drained less than one gallon of fuel from the left wing tank and found only trace amounts of fuel in the right tank. Fuel starvation was listed as the cause of the accident.

I have read dozens of accident reports similar the one a…

The student pilot was headed north-west on one of his first solo cross-country flights. The planned track took him from Dalhart, Texas, to the Denver, Colo., area. Preflight weather contained nothing ominous or unusual.Once airborne, everything was going routinely, except that the clouds began to thicken imperceptibly as he eased across the border into Colorado and a light chop began to develop.

Suddenly, the pilot found a solid overcast beneath him with thickening clouds and even more rapidly deteriorating weather.

On the ground, convective Sigmets unexpectedly appeared – as they often can in areas near the significant influence of the Rocky Mountains.Insidiously, two distinct l…

Roy Rogers had Trigger; the Lone Ranger had Silver. And each of them knew they could count on their horse to help them out of a jam. They knew the horse would always be up to snuff. They knew if the horse could jump that ravine or catch that steaming locomotive. Of course, it always would.

Similarly, pilots put a lot of faith into their trusted steeds. After a while flying the same airplane, rotation comes by feel and sound, with sometimes only a cursory glance at the airspeed indicator. Landings at familiar fields are made without second thought.

While that may not be unsafe, sometimes the shortcuts can be more onerous. Some pilots have virtually abandoned weight and balance calcula…

It would take a clinical psychologist to explain, but there are some people who are not meant to fly airplanes.

It certainly doesnt take a superman or superwoman to become a competent pilot, of course. Like riding a bicycle, most people can learn to do it competently, with a few becoming exceptionally skillful. The flip side of that is that there are also those who cant get the hang of it.

So it is with flying: There are some people who, for whatever the reason, simply can not put it all together and fly competently. The difference is that in aviation, this apparent learning disability costs lives and money, rather than scrapes and bruises.

My first exposure to this phenomenon w…

When visiting a parachute jump zone airport, an FAA Aviation Safety Inspector discovered the operator was using K1 kerosene to fuel its turbine-powered aircraft.

K1, sold for home heating use, does not meet the American Society for Testing and Materials standards for aviation turbine-engine fuel. It also does not meet FAA requirements specified in aircraft type certificates.

Using such unapproved fuel creates a situation in which the airplanes performance may not be predictable. Although the kerosene may work for a long time in routine operations, quality control is not nearly as stringent, increasing the possibility that the airplane will be filled with bad fuel.

ASTM D-3699-98 an…

Pilots love to scoff at the aerophobes who express fear at the prospect of light plane flying.

The most dangerous thing about flying is the drive to the airport, might be the amiable retort.

Some sayings persist because the truth they carry is evident. Others endure because no one has seriously challenged their worth.

Dr. Gerald Fairbairn, professor of aviation at Daniel Webster College and a long-time flight instructor, challenges the notion that light plane flying is even remotely as safe as driving. In so doing, he suggests a look beneath the surface of aviation safety. Look at what constitutes risk, why it is there, and how it can be mitigated.

Fairbairn is not decisively…

I really like Aviation Safety, but after I read Climb and Maintain What? [Risk Management, December] I wondered how it got there. Then I thought it might have really been a plant to get readers to write on this topic.

I agree that the hemispherical rule has its problems, exactly as outlined. To address these, I was taught during my primary instruction to fudge a bit on the altitude. Therefore I might cruise at 4400, or 5650, within 250 ft of the xx,500 ft levels during VFR. In fact, my instructor never wanted us at an even height of x,500 or x,000, even when too low for the hemispherical rule, and I stay away from those altitudes still. In 500 hours, I have had 3 near-misses, sepa…